“Deepfake” videos are created with high-tech tools to yield false but realistic clips. A recently proposed assembly bill in California would prohibit "deceptive audio or visual media" - including deepfakes - of a candidate running for elected office from being distributed within 60 days of an election.

It’s not just the government that’s trying to figure out how to regulate deepfakes. Recently, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says the company is evaluating how it should handle deepfakes, saying it might make sense to treat such videos differently from other misinformation such as false news, but they’re also leaving open the possibility of banning deepfakes altogether.

How would this proposed ban square with first amendment and election law?

With files from the Associated Press.

Guests:

Matthew Scherer, an attorney and legal scholar with the law firm Littler Mendelson in Portland, Oregon; he writes on the intersection of law and artificial intelligence. He is the editor of the blog, Law and AI